Officials: Jail escapee had help

File photo Curry County inmate Bobby Owen escaped from custody Aug. 8 while being treated at the hospital.

By Sharna Johnson: CNJ staff writer

Bobby Owen escaped from custody Aug. 8 after investigators said his sister and girlfriend hid handcuff keys in a hospital bathroom for him.

His escape led to the dismissal of the detention officer who escorted him to the hospital, Detention Center Administrator Lois Bean said Tuesday.

Bean said the detention officer acknowledged to her he had violated policy by allowing Owen to enter the bathrooms unescorted.

“The officer admitted that he violated procedures so I had no choice but to dismiss him,” she said.

“It’s about accountability,” Bean said. “I understand that it may look bad sometimes that we’ve got high turnover (but) we’ve given them tools and the training and if they don’t use them, they’ve got to be disciplined.”

Owen, 25, was being held on multiple counts of burglary. He was taken to the hospital to be examined for injuries he said he received in a fall at the jail.

Bean says it appears Owen’s claim was part of what appears to have been a planned escape.